Fashion week A/W 2014 invitations: womenswear collections

Saint Laurent: Continuing its series of collectible art-led invitations, Saint Laurent sent a heavily textured envelope in glossy black, stamped with the house's name in silver. Inside it was a lustrous black book revealing one of the references for the collection: the work of artist John Baldessari, the master of the appropriated image

Balenciaga: The invitation gave no clues to Balenciaga's collection of winter knitwear. Instead, it hinted at the latex detailing that gave the show its edge with a glossy panel that was debossed with the house's name and mounted on a white duplex card. Details were handwritten in elegant italics on the reverse

Prada: To match the men's offering, a simple cardboard sleeve hid Prada's monochrome invitation. Peeling the sheet of black acetate off the sticky, shimmering paper revealed details of the show in plain white foil

Dior: Dior's invitation gave nothing away. A font that was unmistakably house style detailed the Paris show on a matt-white board, quite at odds with the riot of colour that defined Raf Simons' collection. Who could have predicted the dreamy, dramatic show that was to come?

Fendi: The house sent a miniature version of the striking murals that decorated the walls of the Milan show. A folded card with 'Made in Italy' stamped across the rough collage, it foreshadowed a presentation with some fierce Italian impact

MM6: A metallic poster in traffic-cone orange gave warning of Maison Martin Margiela's rough-and-ready diffusion collection in New York. The announcement of Sean Nicholas Savage's live soundtrack was printed in shouty lettering and zigzag bubbles, like an old-school flyer

Stella McCartney: We knew we were in for a lot of fun when Stella McCartney's invitation arrived encased in tangerine bubble wrap. Attached to a wooden board with a painted edge was a Plexiglas keyring spelling out Stella's name

Chanel: Only Karl Lagerfeld could turn a trip to the supermarket into the talk of the town, and his invitation to Chanel's show created a frenzy of interest. Inside, a folded card with poster-paint lettering revealed the details

Acne Studios: In a debossed envelope of dazzling Klein blue, Acne sent a matching card inviting us to what was sure to be an exhilarating show. While the stock was almost sandpaper sharp, it arrived in a silky acetate wallet, preparing us for a play on textures and some startling contrasts

Junya Watanabe: The black, coated-paper card from Junya Watanabe foreshadowed an all-black collection that was heavy on collage

Coach: To celebrate its first show in 73 years, Coach also opted for surprisingly somber black for its invitation, with dramatic effect. Its thick corrugated-cardboard invitation was embossed with the house's logo and painted in unremitting black (bar the raw cardboard edges). Details appeared on the reverse in sombre black foil and names were handwritten in contrasting gold

Proenza Schouler and Edun: Forecasting their winter-wool collections, Proenza Schouler and Edun both sent fun, fleecy invitations. Proenza's multicoloured-felt filling evoked the designers' splattery prints, while Edun kept its cool in grown-up grey, with details on the reverse

Casadei: With its matt-gold foil stripes and deco-esque patterning, Casadei's invitation gave out mixed messages. Were we in for Op Art or Gatsby glamour? The same foil lettering on the reverse informed us we would have to turn up at Milan's opulent Palazzo Crespi to find out

Margaret Howell: A dusty-pink card decorated with an olive and slate design was wholly in keeping with Margaret Howell's earthy English collection

Neil Barrett: With one half of the textured triplexed card in shocking white, the other in matt black, the emphasis at Neil Barrett was clearly on contrast. But, with its glossy, die-cut lightning bolt running down the middle, it was also clear that this yin-yang would be thrillingly off-kilter

Rag & Bone: Rag & Bone's acetate panel was backed in a soft green colour. Details of the show were screen-printed with clear and slate-grey lettering, hinting at the calm, cool palette of the New York collection

Simone Rocha: The close-up of a golden python-skin jacket on simple white card, taken from Simone Rocha's collection, predicted what would become the print of the moment

Theory: The sophisticated silhouettes and sharp androgyny at Theory were echoed with a pared-down white duplex-board invitation with hi-shine black edging and accents. Event details on the reverse were small and sparse, with Theory's name just visible in a light, debossed print

DSquared2: The brand's invitation took minimalism to a clinical level, with two boards binded together with a material that resembled sterilised hospital gauze - a subtle nod to the fictional pyschiatric ward setting of the show. The details were punched out in a stark black courier font.

1205: Designer and Topshop Newgen recipient Paula Gerbase opted for an invitation as consciously discreet as the name of her label. An uncoated mountboard bearing a near-abstract sculptural photograph alluded to Barbara Hepworth-inspired collection. Details were on the reverse in black foil

All-white trend: No matter how wild the shows were, white won out on many of this year's invitations, including those of Maison Martin Margiela, DSquared2, Jimmy Choo and Jil Sander

Emporio Armani: A buttery suede-feel envelope with an opal-white stud paid homage to the collection's pearly queens. Inside, Emporio Armani's turquoise card had the same effect as the aqua accents on the catwalk did against the sea of black

Moncler Grenoble: Moncler sent a mirrored duplex board inviting us to view its Grenoble collection. Taking cues from the show's spectacular set design (which stacked 60 illuminated boxes with performing choristers on the Hammerstein Ballroom stage), the invitation was overlaid with a die-cut grid of windows

Roger Vivier: A fluid sketch by creative director Bruno Frisoni, featuring a wild-haired woman in a pair of the house's infamous shoes, fronted the invitation to Roger Vivier's presentation. It appeared in perfect contrast to the red-foil lettering on the reverse. Together they suggested a laid-back collection with a touch of trademark glamour

Louis Vuitton: A heavy off-white envelope lined in crispy tissue held a debossed invitation inscribed in a flawless, sloping script. Nodding to Vuitton's history of leather craft (and the collection's pervasive PVC), Nicolas Ghesquière bestowed each guest on arrival with a textured-leather envelope. Inside, a letter of thanks typewritten on monogrammed paper humbly thanked them for supporting his debut with the house

Tod's: The house's pièce de résistance was its look book, bound in midnight-blue debossed card like last season's, but with a winter makeover. Shedding some light on the collection's 'Italian set' theme, it was filled with elaborate watercolour sketches, graphic print inserts and notes explaining the method to Tod's magic

Miu Miu: White coated mountboard, edged in gold, carried Miu Miu's details in black foil within gold foiled boxes. The matching envelope, lined in tissue, contained a heavyweight ingot revealing the seat number. The only hint at Miuccia Prada's playful wet-look collection was the clear, sleek sticker across the front

Reed Krakoff: A rough black border around a textured piece of grey-coated mountboard was sent by Reed Krakoff - blank but for a leather label stitched to the bottom. It served as an understated introduction to a show defined by its laid-back silhouettes and relaxed graphics

3.1 Phillip Lim: Pasted to a scarlet acrylic board was a rosebud-pink card announcing details of Phillip Lim's New York show. We could have guessed from the 1980s pop-brights and off-kilter angles what this show would hold